The Big Lebowski (1998)

One of those movies I just didn’t get when I first saw it, but goddamn was it funny the second time around…and every time after that.

The Big Lebowksi is about a guy named Jeff Lebowski, better known as The Dude, that’s just trying to get his rug back after it was stolen by a group of thugs who beat him up because they mistook him for a different Jeff Lebowski. Things get really complicated after that, not even The Dude knows what the fuck is going on, but don’t worry, everything gets cleared up in the end.

Man, I’m just cracking up right now replaying scenes from this movie in my head. You may not realize it right away, but this right here is comic gold. It’s one of those movies where the jokes aren’t going to jump right out at you, so you gotta listen, but once you start picking up on the subtle, Coen-esque humor and stop trying to figure out the plot, you may just pee yourself.

So why a 9 out of 10? What is it about this movie that makes it so damn good?

Well, my friend, I guess it kind of comes down to three things:

1. Jeff Bridges as The Dude. Jeff Bridges is the man to begin with. An awesome actor who’s been in a lot of good movies (Tron, anyone?) and still doesn’t really get the credit he deserves. Combine that with the Creedence-loving, jelly-flip-flop-wearing, always-abiding character of The Dude, and you’ve got yourself one of the best protagonists in movie history (Yup, I went there). H’es an absolutely great character that truly lives up to his title and remains one of the best things Bridges has done in his career.

2. John Goodman as Walter Sobchak. Easily the best thing John Goodman has ever done for the world. Goodman’s never really done much for me, never been that funny and not much of a standout actor. So I don’t know what the hell happened here, because he’s just as funny as The Dude, if not funnier as The Dude’s hot-headed right-hand-man whose without fail manages to compare all of life’s problems with his time in Vietnam. Again, absolutely hilarious.

3. The Coen brothers. These guys must be some interesting mofos to hang out with, because it takes some skill to make movies really funny and really dark in equal measure and they have it down to a science at this point. The script they put together for this is pretty wacko when it comes to story, but priceless when it comes to comic timing and off-kilter humor that’s very much their own. The Coen brothers are just awesome writers and filmmakers, it’s no big surprise that this movie is one of theirs.

It’s kind of hard to convey how funny The Big Lebowski is without seeing it for yourself, but if you crack up at movies like Dr. Strangelove, then this is one is aimed right at you, buddy. And if you’ve only seen it once and didn’t get the hype, please do yourself a favor and watch it again with a friend who’s already part of the Lebowski cult. It’s like night and day.